Beyond The Wall

Tigers Above, Tigers Below

The frightened man was running away from Tigers. He ran and ran, an the tigers were getting closer and closer. When he came to the edge of a cliff, he saw some vines there, so he climbed down and held on to the vines. He was in a spot where the cliff was perpendicular, a straight drop down – and without any footholds. Looking down, he saw there were tigers below him as well.

Looking to the left he could see there was a crevice in the cliff where he could put his foot down and take some of the pressure off his arms. He reached out with his arm, but it was about two feet beyond his reach. So, he wiggled his body and pressed his right foot against the wall, trying to inch closer to the crevice.

Alas! The motion of the body cause the vines to begin to slip down! He was petrified. The vines slipped down a little more. He was shaking all over and his heart was beating wildly He could hear the tendrils of the vine pop loose from the cliff.

In a great voice, he cried out, "God help me!!!"Just as he yelled those words, the large tendril of the vines popped loose! He dropped down about a yard, then a smaller vine held. The fact that one of the vines popped loose caused him to swing to his left along the face of the cliff. He came to a standstill. The smaller vine held fast.

Then he looked down. It was a miracle! His feet had landed on a ledge! Not only that, but the ledge was big enough for him to sit on. So he turned his back to the cliff and slid down to a sitting position – keeping one hand on the vine.

"Breathe, breathe!" he said to himself. He began to calm down. With every breath he said, "Thank you God. Thank you God."

As he sat there, his whole life flashed before him. He looked out. The whole earth and sky shimmered in a cascading pattern of all the colors of the rainbow. He was at peace. He heard a soft "click," and the world changed. Everything around him seemed to change, and everything inside him changed. He looked at the tigers below and felt no fear – only love. He smiled. Knowledge fell upon him like a soft mantle. He knew he was safe, knew he would get off the cliff safely, that the tigers would move off and leave him alone.

He knew his life would never be the same. He had work to do.

Looking to his right, he saw a strawberry. He reached for it, bit in two, ate one half, and left the other half so that others could also eat. It was the sweetest strawberry he had ever eaten.

The ocean of life rises and falls within us – birth and death, joy and pain, it is all ours. When our heart is open, it is large enough to embrace it all. When we have faced fear, death and aloneness, we are unafraid to live, and life flowers under our feet.

Charles ‘Tom’ Brown and Stanley Peele        Aug. ‘06

The Gift

Years ago, "Tom" Brown was very good at investing money. His prowess at this became well known, and soon others sent him money to invest. For awhile, everyone was happy, for both Tom and his investors were making money. Tom guaranteed then a 10% profit. Tom was very good about paying his investors on time and in full. Then the market slumped, andTom made a few bad investments. Tom should have been forthright, and informed his investors about the bad news. He did not. Instead, he kept paying the investors the full 10%. His business imploded, and the investors became angry. Tom was charged with fraud. In 1998, when Tom was 66, he was convicted and sentenced to 17 years in prison To him, this was a life sentence. Today Tom is still in prison. The human spirit accepts no limitations. As the result of being imprisoned, Tom has grown in spirit. He writes articles that brim with deep and abiding wisdom. His articles are inspiring; they speak of patience, forgiveness and love. Stanley Peele is an emergency judge. He has been on the bench for 40 years. He and Tom have been writing each other for years. Through these letters, they have shared their aspirations and their deepest feelings. Although they have never met, have never heard each other’s voice, they have become close friends. Christmas is a time of joy. It also brings feelings of sadness and gloom. On Dec. 14, ‘05, Stanley was sitting at the kitchen table. His heart was heavy, for he had just heard of the death of a friend. He looked at his mail which was stacked on the table. "Oh!" He said to his wife, "Here is a letter from Tom!" He opened the envelope; here is the letter: ~~~~~~~~~ {Stanley – As you can imagine, I’m really limited with what I can send you for Christmas. Ah, but what I can send you is in this box – [Here he carefully drew a box wrapped in green paper with a red ribbon around it, crowned by a red ribbon.] Now this is not an ordinary box. It’s a magical box. When you untie the ribbon and open it, hearts and smileys ( :) :) :):) ) . . . will pop out. They represent the love and blessings I’m sending you. Merry Christmas to you, Stanley!} ~~~~~~~~~~ A tear formed in Stanley’s eye. He thought: "Wouldn’t it be nice if others followed Tom’s lead, and sent this type of gift – rather than presents.?" For here in this simple card, Tom had expressed the true essence of Christmas! By sending this simple gift, Tom had lifted Stanley’s spirits. Christmas is a time of letting go of the desire for wealth, power and fame; a time of turning toward the real world that lies under the patina of drama and ego. And that is the world of love. The earth was created out of love. It was the Garden of Eden. It is our desire for goods, money and influence that has changed the Garden of Eden into a world of turmoil. Today Tom Brown is in prison. All his property has been taken. He has no money, no stocks, no car, no bank account, no house, no furniture, nothing. Yes, he is in prison, but his spirit is free. His mind is free. And with his mind and his spirit, he can travel to the far corners of the universe! Fly away, Tom! Fly upward and away! Tom Brown and Stanley Peele December, 2005